Convection ovens, convection heaters, hot air balloons, etc. operate on the principle that the density of air and the temperature of air are inversely proportional to each other. In more familiar words, hot air rises. Within the context of convection ovens, grills or cookers, this principle is used for cooking items without having to expose the items directly to a flame or heating element.
In state of the art convection ovens, grills, or cookers, a heating element is usually positioned to the side and below a cooking surface. As air is heated by the heating element, the heated air is drawn up through the cooking surface. Problems that exist in these known convection ovens include the inability to uniformly distribute the heated air over the cooking surface and the inability to uniformly distribute the heat. These problems result in varying cooking rates for items located at different positions on the cooking surface. The lack of uniform distribution of the heated air, among other reasons, can be attributed to poorly designed air-flow through the convection oven. The lack of uniform heat distribution, among other reasons, can be attributed to a failure to insulate the cooking surface from the heating element. As a result, items on the cooking surface that are located in close proximity to the opening to the heating element cook at a higher rate than items located further from the opening.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a convection oven that provides a more uniform distribution of heated air over the cooking surface. In addition, there is a need in the art for a convection oven that provides insulation between the cooking surface and the heating element.